Vocabulary Notes to the text

1. coroner – коронер (слідчий, спеціальна функція якого полягає в розслідуванні раптової чи насильницької смерті)

2. the registrar – реєстраційне бюро (чиновник-реєстратор)

3. to hold an inquest – проводити розслідування

4. post-mortem – лат. розтин тіла

5. the deceased — покійний

6. to inquire privately — проводити приватне розслідування

7. suspicious death — підозріла смерть

8. discretion — свобода дій

1. Read the text "Appeals" and think over its contents. Give its annotation in Ukrainian. Appeals

A person convicted by a magistrates' court may appeal to the Crown Court against the sentence imposed if he has pleaded guilty; or against the conviction or sentence imposed if he has not pleaded guilty. Where the appeal is on a point or procedure of law, either the prosecutor or the defendant may appeal from the magistrates' court to the High Court. Appeals from the Crown Court, either against conviction or against sentence, are made to the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division). The House of Lords is the final appeal court for all cases, from either the High Court or the Court of Appeal. Before a case can go to the Lords, the court hearing the previous appeal must certify that it involves a point of law of general public importance and either that court or the Lords must grant leave for the appeal to be heard. The nine Lords of Appeal in Ordinary are the judges who deal with Lords appeals.

The Attorney -General may seek the opinion of the Court of Appeal on a point of law which has arisen in a case where a person tried on indictment is acquitted; the court has power to refer the point to the House of Lords if necessary. The acquittal in the original case is not affected, nor is the identity of the acquitted person revealed without his or her consent. Under a provision in the Criminal Justice Act 1988, which has not yet been implemented, the Attorney General would be empowered, where he considered that a sentence passed by the Crown Court was over-lenient, to refer the case to the Court of Appeal, which would be able, if it thought fit, to increase the sentence within the statutory maximum laid down by Parliament for the offence.

Vocabulary Notes

1. to plead guilty - заявити про свою винність, визнати за винного

2. point of law – пункт закону

3. to grant leave - надавати (давати) дозвіл

4. Lords of Appeal - судові лорди, лорди-судді

5. Lords of Appeal in Ordinary - члени палати лордів, що призначаються за розглядом апеляцій

6. the Attorney-General - Генеральний атторней (відповідає Генеральному прокурору)

7. consent - згода

8. under а provision - за ухвалою, за положенням

9. an over-lenient sentence - дуже м'який вирок

10. to lay down - встановлювати, формулювати.

1. Read and translate the text Growth of the Profession

Today, the number of lawyers in the United States exceeds 675,000. This translates to one lawyer for every 364 people. Twenty-five years ago, there was one lawyer for every 700 people. The rate at which the legal profession is growing will probably continue to outpace rate of population growth through the end of the century.

Why is a career in law so popular? Market forces account for some of the allure. We know that in 1984 the average salary of experienced lawyers was 88,000 dollars. If we could include in this average the salaries of all lawyers, whatever their experience, the figure would probably be much lower, certainly well below the 108,000 dollars average salary of physicians. But lawyers' salaries are still substantially greater than those of many other professionals. Salaries for newly minted lawyers heading for elite New York law films exceeded 71,000 dollars in 1987; some firms offered additional clerkship experience in the federal courts and state supreme courts. The glamour of legal practice strengthens the attraction of its financial rewards.

There are other reasons for the popularity of the legal profession and the unquenchable demand for legal services. Materialism and individualism in American culture encourage dispute. Federalism gives separate legal systems for each state plus the national government. Advertising can now create demand for legal services too. Finally, the principles of separation of powers and of checks and balances make governing difficult and sometimes impossible. When political institutions act, they often are forced to compromise, deferring critical issues to the courts. Pluralist democracy operates when groups are able to press their interests on, and even challenge, the government. The expression of group demands in a culture that encourages lawsuits thrusts on the courts all number of disputes and interests. Is it any wonder that America needs all the lawyers it can train?